and what we do for a sample in terms of the efficiency, yes we have tens of thousands of employees, 24% of those are veterans, men and women who serve honorably in the armed forces over 14,000 of the security screeners because for those of you traveling already noted in the early morning there is a rush hour and in the afternoon there's an afternoon rush-hour so that didn't have any people on full-time status throughout the course of the day from that efficiency model we have a number of part-time people at the largest airports and in the same thing in the afternoon. so we try to find the exact stuff elocution model that makes sense to provide the most attractive security and in the most efficient way. >> if you are granted your wish list, to bigger with your budget be and how would you allocate

the extra money? >> i testified last week for the house appropriations committee where we were asking $200 million approximately less than we did last year so that is my official statement which i will stick with. obviously i think that we are well size right now. i think there are some of things we could do if the administration and congress wished to do that particularly in the surface transportation or internationally especially on the cargo side, but i can also see a possibility of some efficiencies and savings through this risk-based security model, so in the out years we will be interested in seeing that the metrics are and whether we might be able to achieve some efficiency. estimate is there still a place for air marshals and are they a good use of taxpayer dollars?

>> i am a firm proponent of the federal air marshal's obviously. they provide at least that extra weight of security that in the case that individual who didn't come up on anybody is radar whether there is that violent extremist that we have seen over the last several years particularly the east the hoisting operation if somebody has aligned towards america and is able to go on line and look at the cookbook or whatever it may be to construct a device similar to what was sought on christmas day 2000 two -- 2,000 line that could bring down an aircraft and that person is here in the state and hasn't been detected by anybody would reduce this task force in the state and local police nobody coming up on anything and that person is able to get through a metal detector because he or she has no metal on them and give them a plan than the federal air marshals or their as the last line of

defense for the u.s. government and so i see them as a valuable aspect of our multiple layers of security and even if they are not here marshals on that particular flight we find the money risk-based model also there is a deterrent effect because we know that terrorists are aware of it that we have federal air marshals here in the u.s. and they see that as a deterrent and we are also fortunate enough to have a number of pilots who are also armed under our officer program so even if there isn't a federal air marshal on board it's possible that there would be an armed pilot on board that if they try to get in the pilot would also have that opportunity to defeat that terrorist. >> do you think that the see something see something campaign is working? >> writing is a lot of common sense. i think it's something that we saw with the times square bomber

where the offender salles something facetious and reported and that is incumbent upon all of us as americans is to say there's something that seems out of whack and i have concerns about this person or this event as much then it just makes sense to what the authorities looked into and result those concerns. as far as identifying particular terrorists i know from my fbi experience that a number of investigations were initiated based on the same principle. we didn't call it sees something say something but there's somebody doing something suspicious and i am concerned that they may be planning something that's not good, so there is clearly value in the public being aware of what is going on in the suspicious activity. >> does tsa have any procedures in place for preventing and responding to the possible

release of a select and biological weapon on an airplane? >> there are a number of particles that have been practiced and gained out if you will which i want going to be till the the short answer is yes, and depending on what the type of toxic or poison may be with different levels of effectiveness, so the short answer is yes. >> most people think of tsa as an air passenger screener. can you tell more about the fiber teams and their recent successes? >> again, the whole idea of the viper teams is based on the premise terrorists are deterred by two or three primary things. one is the armed law enforcement, to come a canine teams and closer to television. we know from the london attacks on july 7th of 05 and the

attempted attacks two weeks later on july 21st that if there are suicide bombers than the cctv is not affected because we saw some of the commerce in london before they went in to london to actually look up at the cctv as if to say in ten minutes i'm going to be dead and sending people along with me and so it's basically testimonial to that person's suicide mission but for those that want to do something in terms of leaving a bomb or something like that, we know the cctv can be effective but armed officers and canines are good deterrence and so the whole purpose of the fiber team and the intermodal response teams are to try to throw off the terrorists who may be doing surveillance at the station or airport and they go tuesday at

10 a.m. and don't see anybody there sat in terms of law enforcement presence they say okay next tuesday we will try again, no law enforcement present come at 10:00 when they're planning to do it, and on that tuesday at 10:00 there is a viper team which is armed and tv crews security inspectors but it's always the police authority which would simply be visible for any punitive terrorist. >> what is being done by the tsa to be more open about how to manage the no-fly list and how can be refined since implementation manages the security and better catches threats without being subject to persistent charges that it violates the civil liberties? >> the no-fly list is based on intelligence that has been provided to some other component

of the u.s. government or our foreign counterparts to then provide the to the u.s. government, so if you are on a no-fly list there is information about you that you are a potential threat to particular aviation and so that is a reason for denying you the privilege of flying. that being said, there are others who are not in that status but who had received additional scrutiny because the director of information about them so only the there is some derogatory information about from some credible source or not list. the lack of transparency gets to the point of revealing what that derogatory information is which in some instances you've heard the old adage that the government needs to protect sources and methods of the collection of that information and in some instances that is the case that to provide what that intelligence is in any type of public forum or even to the

individual who may be using that as a fishing expedition to find out what the government knows about him or her would be seen as detrimental to the national security, so that is a background on it and that's the reason we have these briefings every day. we look at the next several days in terms of who are the no fly individuals who are wanting to fly and then known as the additional scrutiny to see if there's any patterns or groupings of people that we should be focused on from eight risc based process. spec over 500 to screeners have been arrested for stealing from passengers' bags. d.c. this is a secure the floor because of someone can take all use out of a passenger's bag cannot be tried to put dangerous items in them? >> not sure what the 500 number comes from. there have been a number of possible tsa employees and other folks, other agencies, airline

employees arrested for theft, and it is a -- it has been a problem. it is also security concern, and that's why we use cctv extensively particularly in a checked bag area to also ensure both the protection of the security officers who may be accused of stealing something but also to deter theft in those instances, and we've been able to rebut allegations on a not a regular basis from those obligations by just going to the cctv and showing what the security officer did with that checked baggage and in those instances we do have credible information we've taken steps with the inspector general and the u.s. attorney's office, wherever that is to have those individuals not only fired but prosecuted. >> what are your reasons for favoring using government

security officers at airports over john mica's privatization proposals? >> of course we have the project security richmond set up prior to 9/11, and i think tsa was created for the core purpose of preventing another 9/11. and so, philosophically at its core i can see tsa as a u.s. government run the organization with the counterterrorism focus and there are benefits of doing that that have been discussed. what has also been with the issues for me is what is this from a cost perspective that up until this point to have the privatized reports cost more from the u.s. tax payers because they're still paying the cost of the privatized screening and have to follow the same standard operating procedures and the sand particles that we use every other airport and that is one of the reasons we just haven't seen that many airports actually

apply. we have 16 currently being run as privatized screening work forces san francisco being the largest. we have to new airports applied in the faa authorization bill which was included. the change in the way we treat applications and so we look at those closely and work closely with the congress to see how we can best implement the congressional intent behind the legislation. >> do you worry urging the public to report suspicious behavior on the natural announcements, highways billboards and basically everywhere can cause para anaya? >> i'm not worried about that. if somebody is predisposed to that the net me feed that, what know, again it's just common sense that if people are aware that there is some action that can be taken the other side of that every once in awhile fbi and other agencies where

somebody is wanting to discourage someone of his reputation so let's say this person is going to try to get on this aircraft and director literalists you look into it and find out pretty quickly that is not the case and so the person that made that allegation is usually charged with a criminal offense in that regard. but no, i think it is just common sense and saying let's all work together as opposed to the government's responsibility to do this, it's all of our responsibility is the way i look at it. we share our common goal of providing the most effective security transportation. we want to get from here to there safely to see our loved ones and take care of business so let's do that in a fashion and that is what i think works best. >> what work is the tsa doing with transportation and what is their accomplishment? >> we work closely with the over

the road buses which carry millions of people every day. we also work with the commercial truck drivers particularly those that have a hazardous material endorsement because the concern over what interest may do and the hazardous material load and so we work with them to strengthen their security protocols where we of grant funding available. we also try to address the highest vulnerability area used in the risk assessment model, and whether it is providing training or resources in terms of equipment, screening equipment or whatever it may become and then we have some regulatory authority for who is actually working for example as commercial drivers and with the industry to make sure that their workers had been vetted against the terrorist screening database

>> we are almost out of time but before i ask the last questions i get a couple of housekeeping matters to take care of. i'd like to remind you of some upcoming luncheon speakers. march 14th have former representative patrick kennedy and jim to talk about the mental health care of the act. dr. deepak chopra and the internal revenue service. again i would like to prevent our guests with the traditional press club mug. it holds more than 3 ounces of liquid so you probably can't carry on. [laughter] the last question have you had to be submitted to a pat-down when going through airport security? >> global times. i go through security everytime. on one of my international trips

i was traveling through a well-known western caribbean hub and went through the debt metal detector and i have no metal on me and yet the alarm went off. they sit over here, sir. they didn't know who i was and i received a thorough pat-down. i complimented the security officer of the thoroughness and made me stand up straight. so why do. [laughter] >> how about a round of applause for our speaker today. [applause] thank you all for coming. i'd also like to thank the national press club staff including its journalism institute and the broadcast center for organizing today's event. finally, here's a reminder that you can find more information about the national press club on our web site. also if you would like to get a copy of today's program, please check out our website, www.press.org and i want to think you all very much for attending. we are adjourned.

[inaudible conversations]

if you are in a predominantly white sitting to the backing of white people, the trust of white people what did you have to do to get that backing? what did you have to do to get that trust, to get that recognition? there is this fear that one of the things you had to do was to be trey in some form your community.

u.s. trade representative ron kirk on monday spoke about u.s. exports and the country's policy for issuing visas. his remarks at a conference hosted by the national association of counties here in washington. this is about 25 minutes. islamic ibm paula broke commissioner from franklin county ohio, columbus. i see some of my ohio colleagues here. it is our distinct pleasure to be here today, and we'd like to begin with a very brief and introductions. i've mentioned by from franklin county ohio, columbus, and i am the vice chair of the international economic development task force, and the chair valerie brown gets her regard. she wasn't able to make it today. and i would like to acknowledge

our ceo and also stephanie osborn from naco who does well in keeping us apprised of everything we need to know. and if we could, i would like to start on the left-hand side and ask our task force members to introduce themselves. >> [inaudible] yes, we enjoyed having him in columbus. thank you. >> the community of economic

development. >> [inaudible] [inaudible] in the interest of time i think we will go to our main attraction today. we are really honored to have united states trade representative ron kirk joining us today. i almost called you mayor kurt because of course ambassador

kirkes to be the mayor of dallas texas, and he has done so many things. actually he's really done it all. he's been a very successful attorney, and he was the texas secretary of state under governor ann richards, and we are very proud to have him now talking to us today about trade. he has really exert an unprecedented level of effort on behalf of president obama in working to increase exports in particular and we are delighted to have him here to beat he is the father of two daughters, right? and we were talking about vacations and a little bit about tourism before hand. so, without further comment, i would ask representative ron kirk our u.s. trade

representative to step up and tell us what is going on. [applause] de mix thank you, feel free to call me mayor. i'm going to call you vice mayor, my new best friend and thanks to you all for giving me a chance to come and visit with naco. i've not had an opportunity to address you all but i have known very going back to my time working with both the municipal league as well as the u.s. conference of mayors, and larry still dresses better than tom. [laughter] and you can tell them i say so. i want to get your time but larry, tom cochran and on at least have one thing in common we know where we were when tupac was killed because we were on the same street corner and loss vegas but that's a different story. it's good to see our commissioner here from terence county, our good neighbor have and so many of you lives trying to lay down your state because

i'm proud of the fact i think i visited every one of your states during the time i've been in office as we have sought to build a new template for a trade policy focused at least as much on the trade as the benefits, and we did that for fairly simple reason, the president obama recognize two things early on, given the reality of the global economy and our competitiveness and the opportunity that america has to answer our number-one concern that's how we keep our economy going and create the next generation of jobs that america has to be in the position to go out and compete for all of these new consumers that are not coming of age in places like brazil, russia, india, china and south africa. and you will hear the term

bricks mention the lot. and for those of you that maybe don't study trade as much that the that is an mckiernan for is a result, russia, india, china and south africa. so, we intuitively understood that a part of our economic revival and part of our economic platform in this president's initiative of building an economy in the last had to be our ability to do a couple of things the president outlined in his state of the union. we needed to save more. we have to be more than just the world's biggest consumers coming and we needed to invest in our young people coming and you heard the president say we have to help educate come out in a field and out build the rest of the world and what we want to do then is not only be the world's most consumptive market but begin to feed the appetite of these 95% of the world's consumers who now lives somewhere other than america.

we want to sell them things and the good thing is part of that is working. none of us are ready to declare victory and we are comfortable with the pace of our economic recovery and listening to you, some of you represent economies and counties that are probably doing well and some of your present counties that may not experienced any of this economic boom but all of us have friends and neighbors that still are free anxious about this economy. all of us now for the first time know someone that has been personally touched by this economy and a word about job creation. but the reality is much of what the president has put in place is working. we've created jobs for 23 statements now over 3.7 million jobs in the last 12 months we've added 2.2 million private sector jobs, and one of the things we are proud of, part of that story has been an initiative to president put in place two years

ago to double the u.s. exports, so five years knowing that for about every billion dollars in exports and we can create 5,000 jobs, so if we were to double our exports dhaka can help us create 2 million jobs, and right now economists estimate that almost half of our job growth is coming from exports. the significance of that only represents about 13, 14% of our gdp to be the consumer spending is three times that much. some experts punch above their way to come and communities that are able to invest in helping businesses export do so very simple reason it's a great way to grow your banks and create jobs, and we know the businesses that export more tend to grow faster, they hire more employees, and at least the data shows employees that work for a company that's involved in exporting tend to earn about 18

to 20 more than the national average. what we want to talk to the county and local officials about this? my bias coming to this job as a mere was based on couple of things. one complete understand how frightening words and from the government and i'm here to help you can be to a small business and second, if you are a county official we are closer to our business than any others. we interface with these folks every day and we intuitively understand if you really want to grow and create jobs it's great if you are blessed to have a bowling or general motors or caterpillar or dell in your neighborhood but about every elected official in the world represents a farmer or small business and still come half of americans who get a new job get one working in a small business and so part of what we have been

doing is trying to grow our export base model the working with large exporters but also demystify the world of trade for small businesses because we did a number of things and the most important when it came into the trauma the most important thing i asked is who are our customers? who exports? there are fewer than 300,000 businesses in america that export, it's roughly what's uzi number 290,000. what stunned me is 97% of this or what we defined as the small business as we appeal that back even more, we found most of our small businesses to export only go to one country and have one customer. now again, we saw this as low hanging fruit. the global averages about three to 5% of the base. i don't know if we can turn the volume down. we are when to pull that down. it does that help? anyway, if we can double that

number it's a great way to not only increase exports but jobs as well. so we have a number of tools. one, the work we do it than you this tiahrt is twofold. i am the principal advisor for the president and congress on the trade policy so the first thing is we find new markets and accomplish that in a big way by working with congress to address outstanding concerns in the past trade agreements with triet, panama, colombia which are going to get access to $12 billion more in the markets and at least 70,000 jobs but the agreement with korea will go enough force come march 15th. once we pass an agreement than we have to work with them to make sure. the important thing is 80% of what we sell with curry and right now the manufactured goods, the minute that agreement was in the force that's going to go to zero.

two-thirds of what we saw with korea is an agricultural products. the minute this agreement goes into force the tariffs bolten zero. now let me give you an example. our tariffs were the lowest in the world. we have a believe that by lowering our tariffs, first of all we in power were consumers and business people. we make it cheap for you to buy when you want to buy and from wherever you want. most other countries and tariffs can be anywhere from twice to 100 per cent higher, so if you are a business person selling in korea paying an average tariff of 18% on everything yourself and that goes to zero from day one you can understand what's going to do for your competitiveness. we are also moving to conclude the columbia and panel agreement in force and when we do that we will have the same advantage. the other element the president

told us to focus on is enforcing our agreement. sharing with the commissioner unfortunate enough to have found someone who would put up with me the last 24 years and i may native texan but my wife was born in ohio and was raised in detroit and when i went before the senate committee for confirmation, one of the senators asked me what is my background as a major qualified me and i gave him to the answers. i said one, a sense of urgency, and having a bunch of in laws daughter all autoworkers because if you are from texas like the commissioner and only come if you are from california or hawaii or washington, you know of wrinkly when i go to those states they are telling me capri klein, go, go, let's trade, trade. but i do think that my having been in detroit and cleveland and cincinnati the last 20 years i realize not everybody looks at trade through the same prism and there are a lot of communities

that are justifiably frustrated a policy and the single biggest complaint that i heard as we don't enforce it. we open up our borders but we are all fighting for the american workers from other countries don't give us the playing field that we deserve. so from day one we have had a tree aggressive posture to not only find new markets but president obama insisted we were going to have the strongest enforcement initiatives in the administration, and we've done that to be we've brought more cases in the world trade organization, twice as many cases against china as any other administration and we are running those not to be belize but to stand up for the fairly basic principle the trade only works for free but the pleas by the rules, i've never met a business large or small that asks me for a special advantage but what they've all said is if you give me a chance to compete on a level playing field i will take my chances but i cannot

compete if it is stacked against me so the president said we are going to address that and last week the president and the house then created by executive order in interagency trade that forced the center to make sure we bring all the agencies and government that have the ability to force the trade agreement so we are working as thoughtfully and aggressively as possible and we are not wasting money because we are in the same financial pressure that you are and we've been asked to do more with less but we want to make sure we have the ability to do that. i want to make sure i have time for your questions so if i can i want to do two things. i'm going to give you my website, it's ustr.go and i'm going to ask for your help because i know many of you serve on the tourism boards, which we don't think of all the time. tourism is a huge part of our trade infrastructure but for those of you particularly that interface with small businesses

and you think they may benefit from some awful we are doing a one to give you to web sites. the president brought all of government in and said one of the biggest concerns we have from business is we love what you're doing, we love what we hear from commerce and from ron kirk, we love what we hear and then i get home and i don't know who called colored one start. i'm just a small business. so we launched a new web site called business.usa.gov. it's new, so work with it. but the ideas we want to have a point of entry particularly for the small and medium-sized businesses where they want to know about exporting or how they get finance or how they can get marketing they can go to the one side and there is an export specific web site called export.gov. so go if you have questions or comments and finally since you

are the local officials and i understand where you send a lot of your time a lot of the issues we've highlighted for both governors and mayors if we are right to meet this goal we have to also address those other elements of the president's initiative and its infrastructure. we are not going to compete with china and korea and others with parts in other cases that have not been modernized in years. we have one of the most aging infrastructure is in the world. i've been at the ports from tampa to baltimore to washington and houston. all of them are excited but nervous about what's happening in panama because its spending $14 billion set in wyden the canal. the ports, the counties that have the ability to take advantage of that have a huge opportunity to add to their economic base, but collectively i think we can work to do a

better job of helping the american public and congress understand that even in a very challenging economic environment we cannot shortchange investment in our young people coming and we have to make sure the of the tools to compete but we have to invest in our core infrastructure so we can continue to grow. i know i've said a lot and thrown a lot with you but i'm thrilled to have the chance to be with naco and i have time for a couple of your questions. if you have a follow-up, please, feel free to contact me directly. christine is here with me. some of you may remember christine has been with secretary vilsack working on the issues but her first love is the international affairs so she's going to run the intergovernmental relations so if you can't get me, feel free to reach out to christine. >> why don't we stop and take -- >> i see this gentleman.

>> would you give your name and county? >> good afternoon. [inaudible] i got to meet with [inaudible] is the administration going to move an increase in the visa cap on the implementation of march march 15th but i think it's important we also look at the investment to come through -- i.t. the information and get back to you and i know that we have addressed some visa issues but congress is very prescriptive but the work and in the federal government and telling you i've got the best

job and i've been a major ones because they've to hundred 50 employees so i don't have to worry about those thousands of public employees doing things that get on youtube every night. but the inner commercial treaties and the one thing they tell me is the don't want me making immigration law by trading policy, so we will engage on the issue which is frankly crippling us right now because i know many of you are frustrated. we hear from business after business. we go and make these and my customers can't get a visa to learn how to use but there's a difference between the visas, so i want to make sure i don't miss this up, but again, collectively this is a place where we need to make the congress passed to and the immigration policy and we need to have the visa reform as part of that but for the tourism as well the numbers are up.

but again, one of the things constraining it is the difficulty some people are having in getting the visa. commissioner brooks? >> what progress are we making on the intellectual [inaudible] >> one of the areas that we spend half of your time on in terms of enforcing for a practical reason i've been in a steel mills. the steel mill, the auto is and what people think it is. these are highly innovative high-tech industries. america's ability to compete and win in the future. we lose that if we don't have

protection of our intellectual work products. so we worked diligently in the number to make sure we have a strong intellectual property rights. i mentioned the trade agreements we passed. we know more now than we did and nafta so we don't pass a trade agreement that doesn't have the highest standards of intellectual property rights we can get commesso korea, panama and colombia of the intellectual property rights you can get. one of the most ambitious initiatives are the trans-pacific partnerships working with nine other economies to design what we would like to believe will be sort of the next generation trade agreement and within that we are going to take that to another level. last year we signed it into counterfeiting trade act which when congress passed a think the intellectual property rights act

in 27 directed the of administration to do everything we could in our intellectual treaties to make sure we have a strong role of law. you still have some countries in which they just don't do it and in that case we take him to court if you will in the world trade organization. one example is you may have read that the presumed next president of china, the vice president chi was you two weeks ago and as you may have read he went to iowa where he visited 15 years ago then he went to california. one of the biggest issues we always press china on as intellectual property rights enforcement, combating piracy, combating theft of intellectual property and we want a fairly significant case against china in the wto particularly on protection for copyright and in the middle of that we were able to get the degree to comply with

the patient of it. microsoft can tell you for every computer sold in the united states responded to hundred $85,000 on software. in most emerging countries that's about half that. and if china is less than 10 cents on the dollar. the government itself was operating on about 90% pirated software saw one of the things we're doing is to say how about if you by the legal software? so we pushed them, they've agreed to buy it and then you have to give your agency the money to buy it. if you will set the example, and hopefully others will begin but it is a huge issue for us because we lose a lot in terms of piracy and theft around the world.

>> [inaudible] >> if i can be briefed that isn't a question that as an answer. i know people think differently about the stimulus bill but the stimulus bill worked. there are some that are do it didn't work make a stimulus for the tax cuts because that's what the republicans want. was the right thing to do that many counties, many communities use that stimulus bill to

partner with state and local resources to build roads and bridges, to build parts but we need to do more of it and as you know we've got hundreds of thousands of construction workers laid off around the country. it is a common sense thing to do. the president included infrastructure funding in the jobsites act, he's asked for it in every budget and we are going to continue to press and we need on the bipartisan basis governors and mayors and county officials to stand up and say, you know, this is how you not only put america back to work but it's doing something that we radically need to do. i was home this weekend with a lot of pride because we cut the ribbon on the bridge and had a chance to work on when i was the mayor and they can to us and said all these bridges are about 20 years beyond their useful life. we have to replace them but it took 14, 15 years, you all know how long it takes. it can't take that long so i

think it is a common sense thing to do and hopefully you can join and work with our leaders in congress to do something that just makes sense to enhance our competitiveness and put hundreds of thousands of construction workers back to work. >> thank you very much from secretary ambassador. [applause] there's a real anxiety in a substantial part of black america one confronting black americans who are successful in the wider society because there's this thing sunday that to be successful especially if you are in a predominantly white setting, to get the backing of white people, to get the trust of white people would do you have to do to get the backing, to get that trust, what did you have to do to get the recognition? there is a fear that one of the things you have to do was vitre

in some form your community. coming up over the next several hours we will show you

highlights from the second day at aipac. we begin with the executive director followed by senator joe lieberman. >> i want to start with a few comments and words of appreciation. first of on to say thank you too rosy for your leadership over the last two years in your organization. i look forward to continuing the next years to get their. thank you. i also want to say congratulations to michael and the kassen chellie your leadership and dedication i look forward to the next years of partnership becoming even deeper and stronger to work together to strengthen the united states and israel. i want to take a moment to recognize the two dozen students that are with us this morning

think you for joining us. in particular i want to recognize the shipment from the u.s. naval academy in annapolis and of the cadets that are here from the united states military academy at west point. thank you. [applause] >> finally, i want to express what an honor it is to share this podium with our next speaker you will hear later this morning senator joe lieberman. senator lieberman has been truly

one of the giants on behalf of the relationship in the last 24 years on every single issue affecting the relationship i just want to see what an honor is to be here with you this morning. i am here today to talk about the danger to america and to the world. i'm here today to talk about a nation that shouldn't become a nuclear power or possess a threat to other oil-producing nations in the persian gulf, dominate opec and drive up the price of oil commission the what

proliferate across the middle east. imagine, if you can, syria, saudi arabia, tomorrow's egypt armed with nuclear weapons. i'm talking about a nation that should have become a nuclear power, could provide the know-how and the devices to international to reservists, to hezbollah, hamas and other radical islamist groups all operating under the umbrella of non-nuclear nation. this is not speculation. this nation has publicly declared it is prepared to share the technology with its friends and nor are they distant from our shores or our cities because i'm talking about a nation that

should it become a nuclear power can bring terror here, terrorists armed with devices here to our own hemisphere, the nation could share its nuclear technology with venezuela, nicaragua bolivia, its friends who are no friends of america. taken together they pose a danger to america. i'm talking about a nuclear capable iran. that changes everything. it's not necessarily to even have the bomb, to demonstrate they have crossed the nuclear threshold. iran was the capacity to produce

the weapon. there's a risk to peace and a threat to the world. iran as a threshold nuclear state will strengthen our foes and frighten our enemies. we know today that in the way we never even knew before it just how close we came to war during the soviet union over the cuban missile crisis. we were seconds away. iran allows different from that which was at least that soviet leadership which was at least operated on a calculus to them about using the most devastating weapon, and there is ample evidence that we cannot count on

that regime and that is why as president obama stated yesterday morning, containment, a policy that would allow iran to have a nuclear weapon is not the answer. [applause] preventing iran from ever having a nuclear weapons capability, that is the answer. [applause] it's a risk for the united states and allies. a risk is the greatest, the threat existential for one country in particular, israel. there is a unique place for

iran's archaeology. he says it is in the pursuit of every state except this rell should they say should be he raced from the map. consider the protection of the moderate former president that is a could be wiped out with just want nuclear weapon it would survive any such exchange. or consider the diagnosis of the supreme leader that israel is a cancer that must be removed. we should dismiss them as the unfortunate example for this regime style but iran has gone beyond the strategy to action. pursuing the strategy today at

targeting the israelis on a global scale. what precisely does that mean? how does it differ from the threat nuclear iran poses to other nations? israel is small. it's distant from danger and measured in seconds. israel is strong but its strength cannot diminish the factors that make it especially vulnerable to read these factors, the place and ideologies, its size, its proximity to danger, of these create a disequilibrium, a divergence about when and the

actions present a critical danger say to the united states or to the left and when they pose a critical danger to israel so even as we act to stop iran, we must be clear and candid about where we are now that iran has progressed to this point. we must start with an appreciation of the efforts to mask its work to shield from the world just how close it has come to a full nuclear weapons capability. no nation can gimlets sovereignty on the knowledge of a clandestine effort by an avowed enemy. [applause]

and this is the reality the context in which they must decide the course of action. if she can put her feet in the hands of anyone, even her closest ally, america, or if she must conduct a strike from acquiring a nuclear bomb. israel was created to ensure the jewish people would never have to put their faith in the hands of others. [applause] ..

then america must stand with the jewish state. [applause]

so what do we do? because despite the danger, despite the hour, there is still time to stop iran without the use of force. but that time is running out quickly. president obama and his administration are to be commended. they have more than any other administration, more than any other country, brought unprecedented pressure to bear on tehran through the use of biting economic sanctions. [applause] they have built a broad coalition to isolate the iranian regime and brought the necessary military assets to the gulf and iran's neighbors in order to signal that america has the power to act.

and in addition, this congress has demonstrated strong bipartisan leadership by passing tough financial sanctions even on the central bank of iran, and that was a key element in europe's decision to ban iranian oil imports. now, all of these accomplished, all of these accomplishments, by our leaders, have led to important progress. iran economy is in a free fall and the regime is more isolated than it's ever been. the problem is, the problem is, progress is not enough. this is a test but there are no grades. the only measure is, pass or

fail. [applause] >> we know that when the regime in tehran feel frightened, it will stop its nuclear pursuits. history shows when this regime was scared it froze its nuclear program. when the american soldiers entered iraq in 2003 and tehran feared it would be next, iran stopped work on developing a nuclear weapon. but when the mullah's fear diminished, iran's nuclear scientist returned to business as curve ball have been at it ever since. the reality today is that the irann regime is not fright 'ed enough.

>> be must increase the pressure on the mullahs and bring even more pressure to bear. four tracks are critical. tough disciplined principled diplomacy, truly crippling sanctions. disruptive measures, and establishing a credible threat to the use of force. [applause] >> all four, all four are necessary, all four are essential to underscore beyond any doubt that the united states and the west are serious. serious about stopping iran. [applause] and all four taken together offer the best chance to avoid a war that no one, not the united

states, not israel, seeks. and that is why all u.s. officials, all of our officials, must speak with one voice. one voice so tehran clearly hears that america is unified in its determination to prevent a nuclear-capable iran. [applause] our leaders and our allies should always be ready for productive discussions. but for any diplomacy to succeed, iran's leaders must demonstrate in advance that they are serious about giving up their quest for nuclear weapons. [applause] >> we should demand that they gain guarantee they freeze the

program before talks begin. the best way, the only way, to stop iran and avoid the possibility of war is to demonstrate to tehran that we will use every diplomatic, economic, political, and, if need be, military, tool available. [applause] >> and that is why tomorrow, we will go to capitol hill together as one unified community, to make clear to our leaders that we must ramp up the pressure now through crippling sanctions. together well tell them that iran, not our ally, israel, is the problem. [applause]

and that all options, all options, except containment, are on the table. [applause] to be sure, this is a time of testing. not long ago, israeli author and political figure, who is with us here this morning -- he recalls the words of his late father, tommy la piece, a holocaust survivor, a noted israeli leader and a great friend of aipac, and niche he gave on the occasion of holocaust remembrance day. her words are relevant at this

hour. he said, the enlightened world advises us to be compromising and assume risk for the chance of peace. yet we ask the enlightened world, we ask on holocaust remembrance day, all these who preach to us. what will you do if we assume the risk and sacrifice victims and bus -- put our trust in you and then something goes wrong? what if the other side does not act as it is expected to? and instead hurls at us fire and plagues and poisons and possibly evin nuclear weapons. what will you do then? will you ask for forgiveness? will you say, we were wrong?

will you send us bandages? will you open orphanage of the children who survive? will you pray for our souls? that nightmare vision, that day after, must never come to pass. [applause] israel can never let that nightmare come, because israel's promise to those who felt the flames of the holocaust, never again. [applause] [applause] we have our own role to play.

we most persuade our decisionmakers to ratchet up the pressure so they criminal iran's -- cripple iran's nuclear amibition. we must be prepared at any scenario to persuade our leaders that america must stand with israel. and as we make our way through these dangerous and difficult days, we, all of us, must remain completely unified. we must recoil from any inclination to make this situation or allow others to make this, about parties or politics. this moment -- [applause] this moment can only be about the safety and security of america and israel. [applause] it must only be about a world

which, but for our leadership and our actions, will be changed forever. that is why we're here. here to ensure that on this day in history, in a moment of great decision, we set forth the principles and paved the way for america and israel to continue their shared commitment to values and visions. a vision of a world free from the tyranny of violence, hatred, and oppression. a world where strength and security, peace and prosperity, reign. thank you. [applause]

>> thank you, dear friends, thank you so very much. it is a great personal privilege to join you today in this largest, and i would say most important, aipac policy conference ever. thank you very much. i also want to thank whoever planned the program this morning, because in the thousands of times that i've

been called on to speak, i never had a better warmup act than kathy ireland. [applause] thank you, kathy ireland, and god bless you for all you do. [applause] now, as many of you know, later this week, the holiday of for porum is celebrated and we read the book of esther about the rescue of jewish people from anilation. the hand of god is there on every pace of the story of the book of esther, but the work is ultimately brought about by the acts of a single principled, courageous, and beautiful woman, named esther. in this week, i would be remiss

if i didn't introduce to you the beautiful, principled and courageous woman i'm blessed to have as my wife, esther lieberman. [applause] so i'm sure you'll agree with me that the best proof of esther's courage is that she has lived with me for 29 years. okay. for me, as you know, this is a special moment, because it's the last time i'll have the honor to stand before you at this conference as the united states senator. but i want to make very clear, next year, i'm just leaving the senate. i'm not retiring. [applause]

and i specifically want to pledge to you now that whatever the next chapter of my life brings, and wherever it takes me, i will continue to stand with you as you have stood with me, to identifying for -- to fight for the causes that brought us together year after year, a strong america, strong israel, and unbreakable relationship between america and israel. [applause] i've been fortunate to put it mildly, to serve in the united states senate for 24 remarkable years. during which time the world has transformed in ways that defy both prophecy and imagination. the fall of the soviet union. the rise of the internet. the 9/11 attacks. in the middle east, we witnessed with a great sense of hope the oslo accords of 1993. whose promise sadly has yet to

be realized. on the other hand, in 1994, israel and jordan signed a peace treaty which remains today a mutually beneficial model for the rest of the middle east, israel and arab alike. [applause] in the 24 years we have sadly seen two terrorists fatas and now in recent times the arab world's historic democratic uprising. through the ups and downs, israel, year after year, has grown more and more vibrant, diverse, and security, and the u.s.-israel relationship has grown closer and closer. bond between our two great democracies and our two great peoples, is deeper, wider, and stronger than ever and that is obviously because americans and israelis have so much in common.

from our humanitarian values, to our innovation to our system of justice to our systems of defense, from our belief in god to our faith that the bible is the word of god. americans and israelys come together not in an alliance of convenience. but in a relationship of family. and that is expressed most powerfully in the unprecedented, long-term, bipartisan pro israeli majority in both houses of congress. the truth is that the ultimate guarantor of the u.s.-israel relationship is each of you. it is you, northwestern -- the

american people, who from every corner of our country, and every possible demographic definer, take the time to call on your elected leaders to stand with israel. that's why your presence today, at is has been every year, is so important, and that whys what aipac does every day is so important. i want to say to you, that as much as we have accomplished during the last 24 years in the u.s.-israel relationship, i must admit i leave the u.s. senate with two big items of unfinished business. the first is that despite a great deal of work, israel still has not been able to achieve the peace with its palestinian neighbors that its people want and deserve, and that everybody in the middle east would benefit from. but we're never going to stop working for that peace, and one day, with god's help, it will

come. [applause] my second personal disappointment -- and i feel it personally -- is that the american embassy in israel is still not where it belongs, in the city of jerusalem, the eternal capital of the jewish state of israel! [applause] but neither you nor i will ever forget jerusalem, and we will continue to identifying for a day -- fight for day when the american flag flies proudly over an american embassy and that day, too, i believe will come soon. [applause]

>> today the united states and israel face a knew and even greater danger as iran marches towards a nuclear weapons capability and that challenge is rightly the focus on this conference. do not let anyone tell you that a nuclear armed iran is just israel's problem. it is not. do not let anyone tell you that you can learn -- we can learn to live with a nuclear-armed iran. we cannot. do not let anyone tell you that the problem with iran's nuclear program is what israel may do about it and when. it is not. the problem is what iran is doing with its nuclear program, and when. [applause] the iranian nuclear program is a

threat to the entire world, but especially to the united states, israel, and the arab nations of the middle east. if iran is allowed to acquire a nuclear weapons capability, it will set off a cascade of nuclear proliferation as other countries in the region seek atomic arsenals of their own. if iran is allowed to acquire a nuclear weapons capability it wilt make its terrorist proxy, groups that already have the blood of thousands and thousands of americans, israels, and arab on their hands, infinitely more dangerous. if iran is allowed to acquire a nuclear weapons capability, it will be able to bring the global economy to its knees. whenever it wants. if you think gas prices are high now in our country, imagine what will happen if iran could back up its threat to close the

strait or hormuz with a nuclear weapon. this is a future we cannot afford. it is a future we and can must prevent, and together we will. [applause] it is definitely within our power to stop iran from achieving a nuclear weapons capable. the question is not whether we can stop them. but whether we will choose to stop them. and that is why together with my colleagues, senators bob casey and lindsey graham and many others, i introduced a nonpartisan resolution that says, when it cams to iran, all options must be on the table except one option and that is containment. it won't work. [applause]

that's precisely what president obama has said. now it's time for the other end of pennsylvania avenue to say the same thing. with your help this week, we will soon -- and i ask you to bring this up when you visit capitol hill tomorrow -- with your help, i'm confident we will soon have many more than majority of members of the united states senate, of all parties, supporting this resolution. now, let me say that i do not believe that military action to disable iran's nuclear project is unavoidable. that choice is iran's. [applause] and so far, though economic sanctions applied have clearly affected the iranian economy, the fact is that they haven't led the fanatics who today run

the country, to slow up their nuclear weapons program one eye oat a. -- iota. we also have choices to make. if a nuclear armed iran is unacceptable, we all say it is -- we must make clear to the world that we're prepared to do whatever is necessary to prevent the unacceptable. the president has said he doesn't bluff, and neither can we in congress. [applause] the fact is there is nothing more harm. to our chances of stopping iran peacefully, is the suspension in the end we will give up and let them have nuclear weapons. the iranian regime must hear a message from us, and we must state it loud and clear. either you peacefully negotiate

an end to your illicit nuclear activities or they will be ended for you by military attack. [applause] it's time for us to make an iron-clad pledge which will be heard both by our friends and enemies in the middle east and throughout the world. the united states will prevent iran from acquiring a nuclear weapons capability by peaceful means if we can, but with military force if we absolutely must. some asked why we continue to say we must stop iran from

getting a nuclear weapon capability. rather than saying we aim to stop them from getting nuclear weapons. the answer to that question is direct and it is very important. the time for action is before iran has crossed the line of capable to put together a weapon. when all they have to ties combine the components they developed to give them a nuclear weapon. my friends, if we wait until iran has nuclear weapons, it will obviously be too late. [applause] the threat from iran is more serious than anything faced by the united states and israel during my 4 years in the senate. but if america, israel, and our allies stand together, i know we will meet and defeat this

threat. the great soviet dissident, sakarov, once said, country that does not respect the rights of its citizens will not respect the rights of its neighbors. end quote. for the sake of the people of iran and all of its neighbors, israeli and arab, the days of the despotic regime that now rules iran must be numbered. [applause] and i'm confident they will be, because the majority, the vast majority of the iranian people, who are, after all, heirs of one of the world's great civilizations, reject the

desdespottic and corrupt rule they're forced to live enough. they want the same rights and freedom as people everywhere. that's a story we're seeing across the middle east right now, and it's the reason that the people of syria are fighting courageously against iran's only ally in the arab world, assad. it's why we must do more to help them overthrow assad's evil dictatorship and end his campaign of slaughter. [applause] we simply, based on our own knowledge of history, and a lot of it recent, can no longer stand passively by while people are being murdered wantonly by their own government. we must do more to speed the day when the people of syria and the people of iran will again be

free. [applause] let me close now with a few final words of thanks and encouragement to each of you. because you know, when you come to a conference like this, you step into history, and you try to influence its course. the history of the jewish state of israel is not brief. although some of its enemies today still want to convince people that it is. israel's hit didn't begin in 1948. it began thousands of years before, in genesis 12:1, when god called abe bra lamb to theland will show you and promised abraham i will make you a great nation there. [applause]

through the millenia since then, through good times and bad, some times that we are very good, and some times that were very bad, through times of statehood and times of diaspora, the jewish presence on the lan of israel has been continuous. the late 19th center, theodore herzl began the movement to re-establish the jewish state in the land of israel and as you know well, i suspect, when people told thursdayle he told herzl he was a foolish dreamer, he told them, if you will it, it is no dream. [applause]

herzl and so many after him, jews and christians, worked for it, willed it, fought for it and died for it, and in 1948, the dream did become a reality again. and now, as the expression goes, we're blessed because we're living the dream, aren't we? yes, we are. but don't ever take it for granted -- i don't know in this room you won't -- because even divinely inspired dreams need the work of steadfast men and women here on earth to keep them real and keep them alive. will say to you, standing before this enormous and devoted throng, i am full of confidence

that in the years ahead, and in the generations to come, the work that you and i have been privileged to do together, will go on. the dream will never die. and our destinies call, which is for universal justice and peace, will forever be heard. thank you. god bless you, god bless israel, and god bless the united states of america. [applause]

thank you very much for that very kind introduction. and all of you for having me here tonight. i'm delighted to be here to affirm the strong, indeed unbreakable bond, that existed between the united states and israel. [applause] also to express my own personal commitment to the promotion and

defense of that bond in and out of season. these are the sentiments i look forward to sharing with prime minister netanyahu as well. before i get the substance of my remarks, would like to acknowledge a few people here in the audience. one of the best friends i ever had was the late, great bubba mitchell. bubba and i saw eye-to-eye on just about everything. we shared a deep love of public service. college football. and our families. so i'm glad to see that bubba's wife, or lean, -- arlene,, and d their daughters and husbands are here carrying on the family tradition. made a lot of good friend over the years. i also want to just mention norm

brownsteen and bob asher and ed levy who have been great friend, and and to recognize aipac's president, immediate past present and current chairman, and of course, of course, howard kohr. [applause] thank you for your service to this vital organization, which has helped me and my staff immensely over the years. finally, i want to acknowledge all the kukans kentuckians who are here. we don't have a large presence in the blue grass state but i like to think we make up for it in heart. in fact, one aipac supporter i worked with years ago in louisville, summed up the attitude of most jewish kentuckians pretty well, think. here's what he said. he said, mitch, there's only one

race that's better than the jews, and that's the kentucky derby. [laughter] now, as we all know the u.s. and israel have a lot in common. in addition to the strategic interests that bind us, both were been of conflict and built by immigrants and pioneers and both of all have been firmly committed to the democratic ideals that have enabled their people to flourish, because of these things, israel has always enjoyed strong bipartisan support in washington. but saying we support it is not enough to ensure it. so i'm their offary concrete plan that would bet our shared interests to the test. because let's face it, in the four years since i last spoke at this conference, very little, if

anything, has changed in terms of america's stated commitments with respect to israel. and yet i think we'd all have to admit when it comes to the threat of a nuclear-armed iran, we have now reached the point where the current administration's policies, however well intentioned, simply aren't enough. [applause] four years later, four years after i spoke to this group, iran's actions and several other objective facts suggest that it has made significant progress in its quest to develop the capability to build a nuclear weapon. so let's review. iran is now believed to have produced at least five years of medium enriched uranium for its medical reactors. according to the experts such

quantities raise serious suspicions bat military intent. in the fall of 2009, the u.s., at the uk and france, presented detailed evidence to the international atomic energy agency that iran had, for several years, been busy building a covert enrichment facility. the implication of the report was clear. not only does iran have the ability to conceal enrichment from the iaea and the rest of the world and also the intent. since i last spoke at this conference, iran has rejected the five members of the council, the 5-5 plus one to exchange its stockpile of low enriched uranium to be processed and

returned in sufficient quantities for medical use. further, the iaea report of november 2011 raised serious concerns about the military dimensions of iran's nuclear program. stating that, quote, iran has carried out activities relevant to the development of a nuclear device. and iran recently denied the iaea access to the facility where it may have conducted a test in association with nuclear materials. what is more, it refuses to explain the purposes of its activities. finally, and perhaps most ominously, iran has acknowledged and the iaea has confirmed, it's enriching uranium at the underground facility, enabling it to accelerate enrichment in

an apparent attempt to shield it from a military strike. taken together, taken all of these things together, these things present not only a compelling case against iran but also regretfully against the current administration's efforts to halt the regime's nuclear weapons program. applause four years after expressing grave concerns about the iranian threat, i regret to report those concerns have only become more acute. some people might raise a question at this point. why exactly is a nuclear-armed iran so dangerous? my answer to them is this. if iran behaves the way it does without a nuclear weapon, then

how would it behave with one? [applause] so let's leave aside for a moment they way it's treated weapons inspectors and the u.n., and just look at the rest of its record. the rest of its record. first, iran is the state sponsor of terrorism which provides material support to hezbollah and hamas. it is an avowed ally of syria, which continues to provide it will material support even now. it recently attempted to assassinate the saudi ambassador the united states right here in the u.s. flagrantly flouting u.s. and international law. it has provided weapons and training shiite militias in iraq and shipped weapons from inside

iran that were used against u.s. military personnel in iraq. it recently threatened to close to strait offices of hormuz. it continues to develop ballistic missiles, raises suspicion about the intended use of the missiles as vehicles for a nuclear weapon. and it provides sanctuary for financial backers of al qaeda. now, ladies and gentlemen, these are not the actions of a state that is comfortable with its place in the world. they are the actions of a self-described revolutionary state that is determined to shift the balance of power in the middle east. a nuclear-armed iran would pose a threat to israel, saudi arabia, jordan, the united arab emirates and bahrain.

would it threaten sea lines of commerce and would further embodien terror groups and arms proliferators as president obama conceded before you yesterday. make no mistake, make no mistake, iran has a goal in mind. one that it has pushed for years through terrorism, covert actions, and, i believe, through the active pursuit of a nuclear weapons program that would only bring its broader goals within closer reach. as the great theorist or international real hans mortgagn that put it, the power at its toes postal to maintain or re-establish the balance of power are ominous. ominous. this is what we're witnessing in iran. and it must be stopped. [applause]

now, in the weeks and months ahead, israel and the united states face a day of wreckenning deal. of what it takes to preserve the balance of power in the broad are middle east, or risk a nuclear arms race across the region that is almost certain to upend it. now, president obama knows, does as well as i do, that's why he has said repeat lid and as recently as yesterday, that he is determined to prevent a nuclear iran, and i appreciate this affirmation of our common goal. [applause] it is in the service of this goal that the president has also said since taking office that, quote, all options are on the table.

the question, however, isn't whether we have the same goals. we do have the same goals. the question is, why the administration's efforts haven't succeeded in halting iran's nuclear weapons program? that's the question. [applause] so, let me suggest an answer to the question. the reason the administration hasn't succeeded in halting iran's nuclear program is that its policy contains a critical flaw. here's the problem. you recall that upon taking office, president obama took several steps to pursue negotiations with iran. he famously suggested that it countries like iran are willing to unclench their fists they'll find an extended hand from us. he recorded a youtube message the iranian people.

he also reportedly wrote a letter to iran's supreme leader, inviting him to talk without preconditions, on the basis of mutual respect. this was the engagement phase. it was during this phase that the president presented iran with two deadlines by which they could demonstrate progress. one in september 2009 and one in december of 2009. but instead of using this period to demonstrate progress, iran used it to continue enriching uranium, and to divide the international community. and by the following year one of the administration's own former advisers on iran would have to admit that the administration had in his words, discounted the extent to which the iranian leaders views engame. with the u.s. as a threat to its

ideological identity. meanwhile, congress was growing impatient. and that's why, as the administration was trying and failing to negotiate away iran's nuclear program, members of both parties and the house and senate came together and began to put in place a sanction strategy directed at iran's petroleum sector. many in this room strongly supported this effort and made it quite clear that you did, despite the administration's reluctance to embrace it. but at congress' urging and yours, the president did reluctantly sign the comprehensive iran sanctions accountable and divestment act into law on july 1, 2010. [applause] but make no mistake with this legislation. with this legislation, congress

handled the pratt tool he did not seek. a tool he did not ask for. last year i worked to strengthen the sanctions with an amendment to the defense authorization act which sanctioned foreign banks for doing business with the central bank of iran. this amendment became the basis for a negotiation with the obama administration how to best to sanction iran without causing a shock to global oil markets. senator mark kirk, who is unfortunately notable to be with us tonight -- [applause] -- not able to be with us tonight but thankfully is recovering well was the primary author of this legislation. [applause] and i know he'll remain vigilant enensuring that the

administration will not administer waivers. and by the failure of the administration congress was forced to act, and the president, who initially oppose add strong sanction strategy, was ultimately forced to accept it against his original wishes. and now the administration is making, candidly, another mistake. just as it initially tooth rely predominantly on negotiations. it's now relying too heavily on sanctions, whether by the u.s. or by the eu, through its welcomed decision to cease iranian oil purchases starting in july, which is a step in the right direction. now the administration has attempted to rely on this ambiguity of its military policy by claiming at every stage it continues to keep all options on the table. but this is not a policy.

it's a talking point. and as we have seen, talking point will not deter iran. [applause] look, what is needed when it comes to iran is the one thing that the administration hasn't yet provided. and that is a clear, declaratory policy, that states what we will do and why. here's the administration's mistake. here's the administration's mistake. in attempting to preserve all options, it has inned a vert tently blurred the most important one. and that is a determined military campaign to end iran's nuclear program. [applause]

the administration has used the same language about preserving all options in developing its policy toward libya, iran, and now syria. clearly, the threat has lost its intended purpose. and the markers this administration has identified, whether they be a program to enrich uranium to weapons grade levels, or the decision to construct a weapon, are only truly red lines if crossing them brings about painful consequences. another way to put it, is that the administration's mistake has

been to pursue negotiations and sanctions consecutively rather than simultaneously. without articulating a clear military consequence for crossing those red lines. but in my view, the only way, the only way the irann regime can be expected to negotiate to preserve its own survival, rather than simply delay as a means of pursuing nuclear weapons, is if the administration imposes the strictest sanctions while at the same time enforcing a firm declaratory policy that reflects a commitment to the use of force. [applause] this is so crucial a step, i believe, that tonight i'm prepared to propose such a policy. that is, a policy which has the

clarity and the specificity that the situation demands. and that policy is this. this is the policy i recommend. if iran at any time, at any time, begins to enrich uranium to weapons agreed -- weapons grade levels or decides to go forward with a weapons program, then the united states will use overwhelming force to end that program. [applause] in my judgment, there's broad

bipartisan support for the administration's stated goal with respect to iran, and a strong declaratory policy can expect to have the support of strong majority office both party office congress and us, and the solid support of the american people. so look, all that's been lacking until now is a clear declaratory policy, and if the administration is reluctant for some reason to articulate it, then congress will attempt to do it for them. [applause] so, tonight i make the following commitment in support of the

policy i have proposed. and it is this. if at any time the intelligence community presents to congress an assessment that iran has begun to enrich uranium to weapons grade levels, or has taken a decision to develop a nuclear weapon consistent with protecting classified sources and methods, i will consult with the president and joint congressional leadership and introduce before the senate an authorization for the use of military force. [applause]

this authorization if enacted will ensure the nation and our world that the leaders are united in confronting iran and will undermine the perception that the u.s. is wounded or retreating from global responsibilities. [applause] the authority i suggest will be focused to ensure that the people of iran and the international community that our disagreement is not with the population of iran or, for that matter, with the muslim world. the authorization will not prevent the administration from pursuing diplomatic measures, continued negotiations, and consultation with our allies. on the contrary, it will strengthen, it will strengthen those efforts. this authorization will make clear that any effort by iran of itsy forces to retaliate against the interests of the united states, whether our personnel,

braces, or freedom of the seas, will be met with overwhelming force. [applause] for the u.s., the passage for the authorization of military force ensures that we have a coherent, unified policy toward iran, and that we not take on another military action without bipartisan support. [applause] a decision to take military action against iran should not be taken lightly. it should have the broad bipartisan support of congress. for israel, it ensures that iran will never enter into a zone of

immunity minute from which it can coerce and intimidate other countries. [applause] for the broader middle east, it ensures iran will not be a regional hegemon. free to export by terror or propaganda, especially into the countries experiencing unrest and political turmoil after the arab spring. it is in the clear national interests of the united states to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons across the middle east, to end iran's support of terror and the shipment of arms to hezbollah and hamas, and to protect the freedom of the seas in the persian gulf and the indian ocean. we share these interests with israel. we have exactly the same interests. [applause] so we must face the threat to

those interests together. four years ago, in marking the 60th anniversary of israel, noted that while the bond between the u.s. and israel have grown stronger over the decade, it wasn't until the events of 9/11 that americans fully appreciated the efforts of israel to maintain a fragile peace are but as strong as those bonds have become, we cannot allow past or even current expressions of mutual respect and good will, to obscure the urgency of the iranian threat. rather, we must build on that history of shared interests and shared respect to overcome a flawed policy and to develop the right one that the current situation demands. congress -- [applause] look, congress has played that role in the past. current events compel to us do

so again. and we will not shrink from that duty. israel's security is not negotiatable! [applause] we can't shrink from affirming that to the rest of the world. and we certainly can't shrink from telling a sitting president how we think it is best achieved. after all, we share a common goal. and we will only eye -- achieve that gel as long as we work together in all candor and

mutual respect, and once we have -- and this current threat has passed -- we will celebrate many more anniversaries and an even stronger bond of friendship yet. thank you very much, ladies and gentlemen. [applause] ...

♪ >> good evening. thank you, amy for your generous introduction, for your friendship and ongoing leadership now and as a president of aipac. it's an honor to be here with of the jewish state of israel, prime minister benjamin netanyahu. [applause] i will never forget the great honor of listening to the prime minister in his jerusalem office last may when he took a great hockey in showing of the injured fielder, an artifact dating back

2700 years found in recent evaluations near the western wall. it was inscribed with of the name netanyahu and he ruled, a direct connection to the history of the jewish people. [applause] yesterday you honored the extraordinary career of a true visionary, a legend of secaucus treen founder of the united states, professor. i join you in celebrating his life came he has established israel with many of us considered the great political achievement of the 20th century he has dedicated his life to the cause of peace ever since that continues through this day as the president of israel.

the united states, israel and the entire world is better off for the leadership of. we all congratulate peres that president obama will honor him with a presidential medal of freedom, our highest honor. >> i thank me for mentioning it, but aren't we quiet this year as we come together. [applause] we must never forget like every gold watcher and and many of the

i am pleased to be here fifth senator mitch mcconnell, the republican leader of the senate. tonight reaffirms. even if we don't speak with the same voice tonight. congratulations to aipac's president and all of the leaders of aipac on organizing another outstanding policy conference. [applause] more than 13,000 strong this year. all of the bill would get in the community activists are effective voices on behalf those strong relationship. let us all recognized the future leaders of the nation and what u.s. israel.

[applause] of course i want to honor my delegation, for my own state of california. [cheering] thank you, aipac for your assistance. your effort goes far then israel. anyone who cares about evenly she asia of poverty, the re-dedication of hunter and a disease always to a debt credit to because the strong advocate of foreign aid. it is my experience. the last time i spoke to the plenary session i spoke about my jewish grandchildren. tonight i want to talk about another member of my family years ago a congressman baltimore invited here from maryland? [applause]

i think a year david. a congressman from baltimore took the floor of the house to call on his colleagues and our allies to ensure the safety, security and future of the jewish community in europe. the leader of the height of the holocaust he declared that the last known as perlstein must be kept open as a haven to the jewish people and once world war ii ended in a the for the establishment of israel he noted the jewish community can find no peace in places they once called home. it's not get to it that a congressman was my father for the people persecuted for who they are. he stood firm for the cause of the jewish state. his call was conscious and

principal were part of a lifetime commitment. a commitment passed down to his children. my brothers, another former mayor of baltimore, congress four, the stadium and support of the jewish state. [applause] this is 1i share today. since our family has always been a special place. for america, israel has always stood is a beacon of hope, a. from israel's founding to the present day, or pledge remains the same. israel and america are friends and partners now and forever.

our bond of friendship are founded on the theme of this year's policy conference, shared fraga use, share decision. our commitment is the security and the desire for peace that protect the believe in democracy and embracing the rights of free expression in a free press and respecting. the more than six decades this has been the foundation of our unwavering promise. the israel relationship is unbreakable. the united states commitment is unbreakable. [applause] if our friendship for only injured jaw use as a shared

vision it could easily be said that would have been enough. but our friendship goes far deeper. as a friendship not just of words but of deeds and converse those have meant tangible results from the israeli security. our actions are mutually beneficial aid to israel must and will remain a top priority for the united states congress. [applause] that is why we acted under democratic leadership to codify our country's memorandum of understanding. until then it was a memorandum of understanding we made it the law. until then, you could say we were speaking loudly and

carrying a small step. but the codifying member of the understanding meeting of the law to invest $30 billion in israel's defense over ten years. [applause] that's why we will have their edge with. david and the hyrum missile defense system. [applause] we will build on what american and defense leaders have hailed as the era of unprecedented cooperation and intelligence sharing in the military exercise. in a time of regional stability and uncertainty among the neighbors, we will always stand strong with israeli security.

today the u.s. and israel agree there is no more threat posing the security and regional security than the threat of iran speech of nuclear weapons program. but even without our strategic partnership that u.s. and israel and with an urgent effort to the enter dhaka united states of america but pursue the world free of nuclear weapons is a key pillar of u.s. foreign policy. it is in the interest of american security. it has been the policy of democratic and republican presidents alike. it is a critical part of building a safer world for our families and for the next generation. we must say to all of our partners around the world, we

are measuring our relationship. it would present iran from developing a weapon capability. [applause] and that is what is called a top these active on this commitment, turning our promises of action into crippling sanctions against the iranian regime. thank you to louie for your leadership and most important, your efficacy. during my tenure as the speaker under the leadership of chairman howard berman, we enacted the strongest iran sanctions legislation ever passed by congress. [applause]

the sanctions that sell iran have accomplished the services and the know-how of the energy sector. we offer foreign banks a choice. they can deal with institutions that support weapons of mass destruction and terrorism if the united states that they cannot do oath. under republican leadership we built on those measures tend ginning iran and further isolating the regime from the global economy. the united states is leading the charge of our allies and at the u.n.. in recent weeks under pressure from president obama and his administration, iranian banks have been put on a path to expulsion was an international

network used to transfer money. this action would cut off one of iran's on the avenues left to conduct business in the global economy the way the and we are seeing results. the economy and industry are suffering to bigot partners are coming off their tides and creating commerce. we are so funding the nuclear activity come in short iran is fueling the plight of our sanctions, and our actions reaffirm our message. it is time for iran to suspend the enrichment. the president was very clear on sunday as he said in this room iran's leaders should understand the i do not have a policy of containment, have a policy to

prevent. [applause] our friendships will remain a paramount concern in the priority for the united states. and the jewish state will continue to thrive because. the story is one of courage and bravery, persistence and perseverance, of pioneers that made a desert bloom and a democracy flourish. on the 63rd of the establishment of the state of israel. i believe, one of the greatest political achievements of the 20th century. a bipartisan delegation witnessed the extraordinary transition from israel's state of remembrance 2/8 day of independence from loss of life to victory come from sadness to

jolie kump, morning at a celebration. then we remembered israel's small plants of terrorism of sons and daughters who went to war mecca and never came home. we pray always for the day that the children all across as rail, children could to replace bickel home. we were reminded the jewish people remain a democracy we must continue to fight for the day when israel's assistance is a fact recognized by every nation on the face of the earth. [applause] down on our shores of values and vision, we plan to work to usher

in an era when israel can realize in the spirit of its national anthem the hope to be a free people living in peace and security. thank you for inviting me to go on tonight. and for advancing the cause is a thriving u.s. israel relationship. together our work will continue, our alliance will go deeper, the friendship that's in the united states. may god bless israel. god bless america. thank you. ♪

music ♪ >> thank you >> thank you. thank you.

thank you. thank you. [cheering] thank you. ♪ thank you very much. thank you. thank you. well, just like in the commercial. [laughter] sarah and i want to thank you for this wonderful reception.

the applause that could be heard as far away as jerusalem. the cause can be -- thank you. [applause] thank you. thank you thank you for everything that you do. no more than half of the members of congress are.

michael, you said that i spoke last may, state of israel. you can applaud but now i want a special loss. it could 13,000 men supported the state of israel to stand up and applaud the representatives of the united states. [applause]

democrats and republicans alike come i salute your unwavering support for the jewish state. a specialist a great friend of israel that is not here tonight, senator, senator kirk, i know

you are watching this tonight. please, get well soon. america needs you, israel needs you. i send you. ladies and gentlemen i also want to recognize tonight yelsi who's with us tonight. yelsi, would you please stand up? [applause] yelsi was born in belgium. his parents hit him with a christian family many of the members of his family were murdered at auschwitz.

his mother survived the holocaust, returns to reclaim peres engber hon to israel. all of israel's great a stand we don't forget about it. [applause] today he serves as a minister in my cabinet. it is the story of the jewish people, the story of a power listened stateless people who became a strong and proud nation able to defend itself. [applause] and ladies and gentlemen, israel must always reserve the right to defend itself. [applause]

i want to recognize the ambassador to the united states, michael warren. you are doing an outstanding job and thank you for everything you are doing for our country hampshire for everything you are doing for the friendship between israel and the united states. [applause] i also want to recognize investor dan shapiro to israel. president obama was right, it is in proving.

it's getting better. the government and we appreciate everything you've done to strengthen the alliance between the two countries. so are there any students here tonight. [applause] i.c.e. a few thousand. anyone here from florida or break. and of all to think from wisconsin. that's important. i will tell you about it later. from california cox [applause] well, you are the future and think you'll for ensuring the future of the great alliance between israel and the united states. ladies and gentlemen, tonight i reflected talk about a subject

that no one has been talking about recently, iran. every day i open the newspapers and read about all these red lines and time lines. aretas but would you israel has decided to do or what israel might do. i'm not quite took about what is real will do or will not do. i never talk about that. [applause] but i do want to talk to you about the danger of a nuclear-armed iran. i want to explain why iran must never be allowed to develop

nuclear weapons. the president obama has reiterated his commitment to prevent that from happening. [applause] she stated clearly that all options are on the table and that american policy is not convenient. welcome israel also has cynically the same policy. we are determined -- we are determined to present iran from developing nuclear weapons. we leave all options on the table and containment is definitely not an option. [applause] the jewish state will not allow those with a safeguard to possess the means to achieve

that goal, a nuclear-armed iran must be stopped. [applause] mel, amazingly some people refuse to acknowledge that iran's goal is to develop nuclear weapons. iran plans to do everything it's doing that it's enriching uranium to give a lot medical isotopes. that's right. a country that builds underground nuclear facilities and ballistic missiles and benefactors folsom's of centrifuges and absorbers' crippling sanctions is doing all that to advance medical science. as a you see when that an

iranian icbm is flowing through the air to a location near you, you've got nothing to worry about. it's only carrying medical isotopes. ladies and gentlemen, if it looks like a duck, if it walks like a duck, if it quacks like the duck, then what is it? that's right, it's a duck. but this duck is a nuclear duck and it's time people start calling a duck a duck. [applause] fortunately, president obama and

most world leaders understand that iran's goal, welcome the understand the claim that iran's goal is not to develop nuclear weapons, that's simply ridiculous, incredibly somewhere prepared to accept an idea slightly less preposterous that we should accept a world in which they have atomic bombs. well, sure they say iran is cool, but it's not crazy. it's a testable. my friends, responsible leaders shouldn't put the security of their country on the belief that the world's most dangerous regimes won't use the world's most dangerous weapons. [applause]

and i promise you that as prime minister, i will never gamble with the security of the state of israel. is targeted diplomats, it sends its children to minefields, it stones women, it supports the brutal slaughter of the syrian people. it is the former sponsor of

terrorism, it sponsors hezbollah and lebanon, hamas in gaza and to service throughout the middle east, africa, even south america and the proxy's have dispatched hundreds of suicide bombs, they planted thousands of roadside bombs and fired over 20,000 missiles at civilians, so from terror from the skies and on the ground, iran is responsible for the murder of hundreds of not felt since of americans. in 1983 they drew up in the barracks in lebanon killing 241 u.s. marines. in the last decade it's been responsible for murdering and naming american soldiers in iraq. just a few months ago, it tried to assassinate the saudi ambassador to the united states.

this was in a restaurant just a few blocks from here. they didn't hear that several senators and congressman would have been murdered in the process. iran accuses the american government of orchestrating 9/11 denying the holocaust which they do. [applause] and ron calls for israel's destruction and the work with this destruction, the work with it every day, each day relentlessly. i say all of that to make one point clear, this is how iran behaves today without a clear weapons. think of how they will leave tomorrow.

iran will be even more reckless and a lot more dangerous. there's been plenty of talk recently about the cost of stopping the iran. i think it's time we stop talking about the cost of not stopping iran. [applause] in nuclear arms to iran would dramatically increase terrorism by giving terrorists and nuclear umbrella. let me explain what that means, the nuclear umbrella. the proxy's like hezbollah and hamas will be emboldened to attacked the united states and israel and others because they will be backed by a power that

has atomic bombs so that your servers and we see today could grow tenfold if not more. a nuclear-armed iran could choke off the world's oil supply, it could make real its threat to close the straits. if you are worried about the price of oil today, imagine how high the oil prices could get once iran, the nuclear-armed iran starts blackmailing the world. then you will really have a price problem and if iran gets nuclear weapons this would set off a mad dash by saudi arabia, egypt, turkey and others to acquire nuclear weapons of their own. the world's most volatile region would become a nuclear tinderbox waiting to go off and here is the worst nightmare of all, the

nuclear weapons to iran could threaten all with nuclear turner was on. it could put a nuclear device on the ships, on the truck parked in any city anywhere in the world. i want you to think about what it would mean to have nuclear weapons in the hands of those radicals who leave millions of people in a chance of death to america and israel. i want you to think about all that and i sure that when you do you will reach a simple conclusion for the sake of our prosperity come for the sake of our security, for the sake of our children iran must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons. [applause]

of course the best outcome would be if iran decided to abandon its program. no one would be happier than me if iran dismantle its program. but so far that hasn't happened. 15 years i've been warning that a nuclear-armed iran is a danger to my country and the peace and security of the entire world. for the last decade the international community has tried diplomacy. it hasn't worked.

for six years the international kennedy has applied sanctions. that hasn't worked either. i appreciate president obama's efforts to impose even tougher sanctions against iran and these sanctions are hurting the economy. but unfortunately, iran's nuclear program continues to march forward. my friends, israel has waited, patiently waited for the international community to resolve this issue. we've waited for diplomacy to work, we've waited for sanctions to work. none of us can afford to wait much longer. [applause] as the prime minister of israel, i will never let my people live in the shadow of the

annihilation. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, some commentators would have you believe that stopping iran from getting the bomb is more dangerous than letting iran have the bomb. they say that a military confrontation with iran would undermine the efforts already under way, that there would be ineffective and that it would provoke an even more vindictive response by iran.

i've heard these arguments before. in fact i've read them before. in my desk i have copies of an exchange of letters between the jewish congress and the u.s. war department. here are the letters. the year was 1944. the world jewish congress and poured the american government. the reply came five days later. i want to read it to you. quote, such an operation would be executed only by diverting considerable air support is essential to the success of forces elsewhere, and in any

case it would be of such doubtful efficacy that it would not warrant the use of our resources. and my friends come here is the most remarkable sentence of all, and i quote, such an effort might provoke even more vindictive action by the germans. think about that. even more vindictive faction them the holocaust. my friends, 2012 is not 1944. the american government today is different. [applause] you heard that in president obama's speech yesterday but

here's my point, the jewish people are also different. today we have a state of our ellen. [applause] and the purpose of the jewish state is to defend jewish lives and secure the jewish future. [applause] never again will the jewish people be [inaudible] never again. [applause] that is why israel must always have the above the to defend

itself against any threats. my friends, we deeply appreciate the great alliance between our two countries, but when it comes to israel's survival, we must always remain the masters of our feet. [applause] ladies and gentlemen, it is to continue to be the position of freedom in the middle east, the only place in the middle east where minorities enjoy full civil rights, the only place in the middle east where arabs enjoy full civil rights will

join full and equal civil rights, the only place in the middle east where christians are free to practice their faith, the only place in the middle east where judges protect the rule of law and as the prime minister of israel i will always protect the democracy come always. [applause] and most especially, i will never tolerate any discrimination against women. [applause]

ladies and gentlemen, this week will read how one woman changed jewish history and synagogues throughout the world the jewish people will celebrate the festival and read house some 2,500 years ago a persian anti-semite tried to annihilate the jewish people. we will read how that plot was foiled by one courageous woman, esther. you can applaud. [applause] she deserves a little more. [applause] my friends, and every generation

there are those who wish to destroy the jewish people. in this generation, we are blessed to live in a time where there's a jewish state capable of defending the jewish people. [applause] and we are doubly blessed to have so many friends like you, jews and non-jews alike who love the state of israel and support its right to defend itself. so as i leave here tonight i think you for your friendship and your courage and for standing up for the one and only jewish state. thank you all. ♪

♪ ♪

49 state and territorial attorneys general along with other federal officials convened in washington monday to discuss a variety of legal issues including digital piracy, copyright, intellectual property and stopping the distribution of counterfeit in-store one items on the internet. the summit was hosted by the national association of attorneys general.

standing patiently, so i think we ought to go ahead and get going. good afternoon and welcome to the spring meeting of the national association of attorneys general. this year's president of the association it is my pleasure to welcome all of my fellows, our guests and members of the media to our spring meeting. first i'd like to introduce the color guard from the senior high school junior rotc who will conduct of the ceremony. so please, stand.

>> [color guard] please join me in the pledge of allegiance. i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under god, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. >> [color guard]

[applause] please be seated. again, thanks to the senior high school for the color guard presentation. well done. we have 49 attorneys general attended c to by alphabetical order around the table and i'd like to take the opportunity to

introduce the new attorneys general appointed officer this year. please trend reversed in welcoming alaska's new interregional michael. and we will introduce later. it's now my pleasure to introduce the host attorney-general nathan for the district of columbia. >> good afternoon. thank you, attorneys general mckenna. it's my pleasure to address my fellow members for the second time in the district of columbia. i'm sorry for the weather today but nine sure it's going to get warm and sunny in the next few days and that's not just because

of the hot air of the introductions are about to make it in my first year as attorney-general we've been fortunate to have a very productive collaboration with many of you. we appreciate the perspective and the time given by the executive director and several attorneys general to inform our thinking on the challenges and opportunities we face now because our office is transitioning from an appointed attorney general to an elected attorney general which begins in 2014. in addition, we recognize and value the fine work by many of your offices on the amicus briefs and letters of the federal government and others we've been glad to join and that have helped the district have an ability to have its voice heard on the national matters and issue of particular importance to us in light of the unjust situation that we have no voting representation in congress.

we've also been fortunate on behalf of or 600,000 citizens to have the opportunity to work on and join some of the important multistate settlements that the collective resources have been possible. most of you have been in washington before and i want to welcome you back. for those here for the first time i encourage you to take a vintage of the wonderful things in our city, the wonderful things it has to offer including historical and scenic sites, good food, shopping and other taxable events. we've had an exciting year during the district of columbia and our office. i will mention just to what items i think are related to the overall topic of the meeting that is opportunities and challenges in the state federal relationships. first, we investigated and filed a suit and attend a settlement and consent judgment against a member of our local legislator for the diversion of funds from the district. it took $400,000 intended for

little league baseball and put it in its own pocket. this was the first time in history that our office has ever sued a sitting council member. then we refer the matter for criminal prosecution to the u.s. attorney's office which secured a guilty plea and the individuals awaiting sentencing. i point this out because we work closely with the attorney's office in d.c. which under congressional legislation has stressed action to prosecute major felonies in the district. and while we take no pleasure in this we think it sends an important message about the role of our office as prepared to play in cooperation with the u.s. attorney's office in government ethics and the district. the second major thing as we settled as the presiding judge of the u.s. district court put it in major and historic achievement in the so-called dixon case which ended federal oversight of the departmof